Food waste is a huge climate problem. A new candy has a sweet solution in time for Halloween.
PepsiCo, the American soda company, has come up with a clever idea for the future: The annual Christmas party. Each year, after the holiday cheer has faded away, the company brings out a new drink – or, in this case, candy – that is intended to quench the world’s thirst. Each year, however, Pepsi has to find new tricks to stay relevant. The company started off in the 1950s with the creation of a popular soda called Fanta. Later came Sprite and then Mountain Dew. The year 2011, however, Pepsi finally introduced an entirely different beverage – Cocoa Pebbles. This year, Pepsi has again released a new product: a candy bar with the same name, but different packaging – and a twist on old tricks.
Now, in the spirit of Halloween, these Cocoanimalo bars are made of real cocoa. A couple of weeks ago, I asked my cousin, Kalyani, to share with me what exactly Cocoanimalo are and why they are so special.
“Cocoa Pebbles are very special because they are made from real chocolate bars with a bit of fruit puree and nuts. Originally, the product was developed because we wanted to experiment with the world of chocolate. We were always fascinated to know more about chocolate because it’s a really important ingredient – it’s a key part of a lot of food: coffee, chocolate drinks, chocolates, all these treats.” says Kalyani. “When we tried making chocolate in small batches, we found that it was tough to make the exact process that we wanted. A little bit of sugar trickled out and it was just all a mess. We wanted to make something we could control. We thought this would be a good idea.”
Kalyani, who works in marketing at an automotive company in Mumbai, is the only person who has the recipe for Cocoanimalo, which in fact goes back nearly 50 years. The company first
